Brassica campestris

Common Mustard

This is a very common plant. Nearly all of the plant is edible. In the same family are the familiar broccoli, cauliflower, radish, turnip, parsnip, cabbage, rutabega, and many more of the vegetables we find at the supermarket. For the leaves, the youngest are best, especially if blanched by being kept in the dark for a few days (as by covering the plants with an opaque blanket). The flowers can be eaten raw or cooked, like small broccoli. The roots are woody, but taste like radish or turnip, and are good as flavoring in stews. The seeds are the familiar mustard used on hot dogs.